If you haven’t already heard the news, you probably have now: Pop sensation Taylor Swift, winner of 12 Grammys, sparked fresh relationship rumours on Sunday when she came up to see the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Chicago Bears thanks to the performance of tight end Travis Kelce.
Ms. Swift and Mr. Kelce’s mom, Donna, watched the game from a private box while munching on chicken fingers. Mr Kelce was seen leaving the stadium with the singer in tow, both sporting Chiefs apparel. He was dressed in a KidSuper denim jacket and matching white trousers.
Mr. Kelce’s attire became an instant Internet sensation after a photo of him with Taylor Swift went viral.
In 2010, KidSuper was founded by American fashion designer Colm Dillane. Mr. Dillane, age 31, was awarded LVMH’s Karl Lagerfeld special prize in 2021 and is widely regarded as the future Virgil Abloh. He worked on the men’s wear presentation for Louis Vuitton in January, which received high praise. On the other hand, Mr. Dillane and his fellow KidSuper employees were discussing the surprising fashion choice made by Mr. Kelce during the high-profile paparazzi incident in their Sunday night group chat.
It wasn’t Mr. Kelce’s first time donning the label; he did so en route to the 2023 Super Bowl. (They were victorious, and the Chiefs were named.) According to the designer, this presented an even greater opportunity for Mr. Dillane and his team since they intuitively saw the potential benefits of being in such close proximity to Taylor Swift, whose fame and clout are off the charts.
Doug Gleicher, a friend of Mr. Dillane’s, recommended in the group conversation that the official product titles on the KidSuper website include a reference to Taylor Swift. He said that it took KidSuper’s web developer, Adham Foda, “about one second” to switch the “Bedroom Painting” denim set to the “1989 Bedroom Painting” denim set because the firm handles its website internally.
Naturally I’ve done my very best in so many creative enterprises, and this is the one that took off,” Mr. Dillane remarked.
There are no more sizes of the 1989 Bedroom Jacket, and only small and medium are left of the corresponding trousers. On Sunday, Mr. Dillane decided against refilling the set, saying, “but now it’s like, maybe we’ll only make that item for the rest of time.”
Mr. Dillane noted that while the popularity of the 1989 Bedroom set did not immediately improve his financial situation, it did impress his friends’ “very Americana” parents.
Ms. Swift’s brief appearance at Mr. Kelce’s game had such an impact on American pop culture that it almost instantly produced its own merchandize, in addition to increasing sales for firms like KidSuper. In addition to the Travis Kelce sweatshirts commemorating the Eras Tour, one Etsy store is also offering Chiefs-themed “Loving Him Was Red” T-shirts, a reference to the song’s title track from Taylor Swift’s 2012 album, “Red.”
However, Mr. Dillane’s life was likewise changed by the couple’s public debut; he now claims to be a die-hard Swift fan.
“I am a Swiftie,” Mr. Dillane said. Henceforth I shall attend each and every tour. I plan to support her by purchasing some of her wares. I’m going to spend the rest of my life supporting Taylor Swift, therefore I imagine she made more money off of me than I did.
